Different Kind Of Knight
by heyjoon
Summary: Eliot Spencer never wanted to be the White Knight but when Annabella Devereaux walks into his life, he may find himself doing just that. Eliot/OC rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_I'm so in love with Leverage and Christian Kane's band, so I couldn't resist. _

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><p><em>Pretty girl on every corner<br>Sunshine turns the sky to gold  
>Warm, warm, its always warm here<br>I can't take the cold  
><em>

_Street littered with diamonds  
>Everyone is glistening<br>This whole world shines so brightly  
>I can't see a thing <em>

There was something to be said about Boston in the spring; it was magical. Flowers covered the trees and gardens in an aray of colors, the scent of blossoms drifted through the air, and everyone seemed to be in brighter spirits. Except for Eliot Spencer of course, but that could be due to the fact he was sitting in his truck waiting for the dark haired grifter to leave her apartment, or because he was going with her to get her hair done. The dark beauty had coerced the hitter into accompanying her with the promise of keeping Parker from breaking into his apartment for the next few days; a past-time the blonde had taken to doing at least twice a day. But he couldn't say no to the grifter, he never really could, so when she emerged from her apartment building in a green chiffon sundress and her usual black stilettos he sighed and started up the engine.

"Good morning, Eliot." Sophie greeted as she climbed in the truck.

"Mornin'." he grunted, brushing chestnut locks out of his pale eyes. "Where is this place anyway?"

"It's over on Newbury Street, it's called Athena." she directed as she strapped herself in.

Pulling away from the curb they headed to the Rodeo Drive of Boston, where all the top salons, restaurants, and shops were located. Eliot wasn't surprised at all that Sophie got her hair done there, the grifer didn't even blink at the extreme prices of the things she purchased whether it be $1500 boots or a $200 haircut. According to Sophie if you don't take care of yourself and make yourself happy, then you'll never be able to make someone else happy or live the life you want. That's why Eliot supposed he was so protective of her, she would do anything to make the other members of the team happy and was like a mother to them. She also had no problem splurging on the others if what she got them would make them happy, like the Christmas gift she got Eliot last year; a set of kitchen knives from Spain with his initials craved in silver into the Spanish Maple handle.

As they neared the ever popular Newbury street Eliot noticed how his truck stood out against the more expensive Volvo's, BMW's, and few Mercedes' driving around. Posh shops lined the street on either side, all giving off a vibe of high fashion and even higher prices.

"Oh! It's just there, right near that Cherry Tree." Sophie exclaimed, pointing towards a shop front on the right side of the street.

Sliding effortlessly into a parking space a few doors down from the shop they left the truck, Sophie gliding next to Eliot with a large smile lighting up her face while Eliot looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"You're going to love this place, it's wonderful!" she gushed, linking her arm with his.

All the buildings surrounding them radiated the gothic influence and most, if not all, were built of red brick and had glass shop fronts that displayed every type of good you could imagine. This was definitely a Sophie kind of place Eliot noted as they strolled pass a boutique filled with heels of all kinds and in all colors.

"Here it is!"

They stood infront of a store made entirely up of large windows, the framing around the glass all sleek black wood and the word Athena was placed above the door, cut from a gold colored metal and in Greek style writing; this had Sophie written all over it. Skipping over to the large doors made of frosted glass Sophie slipped in, Eliot quickly following behind her.

The inside of the salon was a pale sage color and the first thing you noticed as you walked in was a receptionist area to the left made of what appeared to be white marble with the shops name stationed on the front. All the hairdressing stations were made of the same white marble as the receptionist desk but housed circular gilded mirrors above them and were seperated from each other by ceiling tall pillars.

Standing behind the stations were a dozen hairdressers, all working on a client, and all dressed in white dresses bordering on Grecian style. The first station on the right, Eliot noticed, was devoid of it's owner and the soft white chair empty of a client.

"Annabella!" Sophie squealed, waving at a young woman standing near the shampoo area in the back.

She was speaking to a dark haired man donned in pale colors and at the sound of her name a smile broke out on her face. Excusing herself from the conversation she rushed towards Sophie, her gold sandles making light tapping sounds on the gold flecked marble floor and her white dress swirling around her knees.

"Aunt Sophie!" she cried, wrapping her arms around the older womans waist.

"Aunt?" Eliot questioned, inspecting the small woman wrapped around the grifter.

Turning to face the hitter Sophie presented the woman in her arms and Eliot got a good look at her. She was small, just reaching Eliots chin, and her hair was the same dark brown as Sophie's but instead it was cropped short into a pixie cut and made her dark brown eyes seem doe like. Her chin was pointed and delicate, her mouth made up of two full, pink lips, and it all lead to a small waist which tapered to her rounded hips.

"Annabella, this is my friend Eliot," Sophie started, motioning towards the rough man. "Eliot, this is my neice. Annabella Deveroux."

"Hello." Annabella greeted, a soft smile on her pale face.

"Ma'm." Eliot responded, nodding his head in her direction.


	2. Chapter 2

_I know it seems to be dragging a bit, but I don't just want to jump into the action and what not, ya know? I want it to be good. And White Sand is a real shampoo we use at my salon and it really does suck, it doesn't wash out very well despite how much you wash it out._

_All the lyrics in the beginning of the stories are Christian Kane lyrics btw, I own nothing except the plot and the original characters._

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><p><em>I'll make sure<br>__I make the best of what's yet to come.  
><em>_Laugh a little bit more while I'm still young.  
><em>_Yeah, yeah  
><em>_Put a smile back in style.  
><em>_I'll make sure  
><em>_I make my daddy proud enough.  
><em>_Go all in and get lucky in love.  
><em>_Yeah, yeah  
><em>_Oh, that's how I'm living now._

When Annabella Devereaux received a phone call that morning from her Aunt Sophie she never expected anything out of the ordinary. She had always done her Aunt's hair since she understood how picky Sophie was when it came to the dark locks and never turned her down; she was her only Aunt after all. So when the older woman had called her the day before and asked to be squeezed in to Annabella's schedule she wholeheartedly accepted. But she never expected her Aunt to show up with the rugged man standing before her in a pair of well worn work boots and with his hair pulled up into a half ponytail. He was attractive to say the least, if the staring of all the ladies in the shop didn't make that obviously clear, but there was something about him that she couldn't put a finger on. Why was he here? And how did her Aunt Sophie know him?

"Ready, sweetie?" Sophie spoke, interrupting the silent staring contest.

"Hmm? Oh, right. Of course!" Annabella squeaked, breaking eye contact with the hitter.

As she turned to lead her Aunt to her station she stopped mid step and turned back to face Eliot.

"You can sit over there if you like," She started, motioning towards the lounge area opposite the reception area. "If you'd like coffee, tea, or something to snack on please help yourself. There's also some magazines in that bookshelf."

Eliot nodded his head before the two women walked towards the empty hairdressing station, chatting animatedly. He sat down in the lounge and picked up a cooking magazine, one eye trained on the two women the whole time.

"So what would you like today Auntie? Just a blowout?" Annabella questioned as they neared her chair.

"I believe so sweetie, maybe a trim as well." Sophie answered, inspecting the ends of her hair.

Instead of seating the grifter in her chair Annabella lead her to the back of the salon towards the shampooing area and motioned for her to sit in the shampoo chair. As Sophie lied back and the young girl in charge of shampooing began to wet her hair, Annabella turned to the girl.

"Make sure you don't use the White Sand shampoo and conditioner, okay? A lot of guests have been saying it's not washing out as well."

When the girl nodded, Annabella returned to her station and started setting up for her Aunt's service, her eyes darting towards the man in the lounge every few minutes. He was in a red flannel shirt and faded blue jeans that looked like they've seen their fair share of better days. He was flipping through the magazine casually, occasionally pausing to read an article before moving on.

Once Sophie was finished getting her hair washed and was placed in Annabella's chair, she trained her dark eyes on her niece.

"So Bella, any new lovers in your life?" Sophie questioned the younger woman, a sly smile on her face.

Laughing lightly Annabella shook her head as she began to quickly cut away the dead ends of her Aunts hair.

"No, Auntie. Not since Stefan, you know that." She answered as she moved on to the next section of hair.

Sophie made a noncommittal noise and spared a quick glance at Eliot, who was still flipping through his magazine.

"I told you that boy was bad news. You need someone who'll treat you right sweetie, not be a total and complete arse." She scolded, giving her niece the 'I-told-you-so' look.

"I know Auntie, I know." Annabella sighed as she finished up the cut.

Her Aunt had given her this speech multiple times before and even though she knew Sophie was right, she couldn't stand to talk about what had transpired between her and the aforementioned Stefan. He was a mistake she made in her past and she was living with the consequences even now, three years later.

"I just want the best for you Bella." Sophie whispered before the blow dryer started.

The thing about Annabella was that she was quick at what she did; quick but extremely talented. She had taken countless classes in the last few years and was licensed in six different states as well as three different countries in Europe; all thanks to Sophie. She made quick work of the damp hair, blowing it out and spraying it with a bit of hairspray.

"It looks wonderful Bella!" Sophie gushed before she shot out of the seat and hugged her niece.

Annabella laughed as her Aunt spun her around before the older woman suddenly stopped and stared at the younger woman in the eye.

"You have to come to dinner tomorrow night. I won't take no for an answer." Sophie stated.

"Tomorrow night." Annabella clarified before they started towards Eliot, the hitter finally finished with his magazine.

The three of them walked out into the Spring sunshine and Annabella walked with them towards Eliot's truck, Sophie rambling on about how excited she was for the next night. Once they reached the truck Sophie turned and gave Annabella a big hug and kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you so much Bella. I'll see you tomorrow."

When Sophie stepped away Annabella turned towards Eliot, who seemed to be focusing on something else behind her. Annabella assumed it was on one of the women who just walked past them, chatting away as they walked down the street.

"It was nice to meet you Eliot." She spoke softly, holding her hand out for a handshake.

"It was nice to meet you too." He responded, grasping her hand and raising it to his lips before placing a gentle kiss on the back of it.

As the grifter and hitter pulled away from the curb Annabella stood and waved before walking back towards Athena, never noticing someone slinking away down the alley just behind her.


End file.
